What Is WhatsApp? An Explainer

When you heard that Facebook shelled out $16B+ for WhatsApp yesterday, did you ask, "What's WhatsApp"? You weren't the only one. While the app has proved its value, at least to the market, it isn't as popular in the United States as it is in Europe, Latin America, and India.

So, what is WhatsApp?
WhatsApp is a messaging app that lets users text, chat, and share media, including voice messages and video, with individuals or groups.

How does WhatsApp work?
WhatsApp relies on data to send messages, like iMessage or BBM, so it doesn't cut into your monthly text allotment.

How many people are using WhatsApp?
The service has 450 million monthly average users.

Where do these people live?
The majority of WhatsApp users live in Europe, India, and Latin America.

How much does it cost?
WhatsApp is free for the first year and $0.99 per year after that. Since it uses data, make sure you keep tabs on your data usage, or just log on to Wi-Fi.

How does WhatsApp make money?
Money comes in from that $0.99 fee. There are no advertisements on WhatsApp, something that the founders said will remain true even after the Facebook buyout.

What does Facebook want WhatsApp for?
Facebook has a messaging app, Messenger, but it is second to WhatsApp in popularity, so the acquisition vaults Facebook to the No. 1 spot. It also gives Facebook 450 million or so phone numbers, valuable information to have for an ad-based business like Facebook. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, in a statement on the deal, said that WhatsApp will boost the Internet.org effort to increase Internet access around the world.

How much information do I have to give to WhatsApp?
Your name and phone number.

Is WhatsApp secure?
WhatsApp says that messages are encrypted and not stored on its servers. But WhatsApp is being investigated in Canada and the Netherlands for privacy issues pertaining to the ability to register a person's phone without their permission and intercept messages. The app also uploads all of a user's contacts and requires them to individually block users with whom they do not want contact. Additionally, even the numbers of those who do not use WhatsApp are stored in the app in perpetuity.

For more, check out PCMag's review of WhatsApp for Android and Windows Phone. Also check out the slideshow above, which discusses the next possible billion-dollar startup deal, and PCMag Live in the video below, which talks WhatsApp's $16 billion windfall.

Chandra is senior features writer at PCMag.com. She got her tech journalism start at CMP/United Business Media, beginning at Electronic Buyers' News, then making her way over to TechWeb and VARBusiness.com. Chandra's happy to make a living writing, something she didn't think she could do and why she chose to major in political science at Barnard College. For her tech tweets, it's ChanSteele.
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